Although solid evidence is lacking for conducting the best management plan for recurrent inguinal hernia, reading the article by Dr Itani and colleagues would help choose the optimal operative procedure or watchful waiting for the disease. Based on a subset analysis of middle-aged male patients who were recruited for a landmark study showing the feasibility of watchful waiting for minimally symptomatic inguinal hernia, the authors conclude that watchful waiting is also an acceptable alternative to early surgery for a recurrent inguinal hernia. To offer early repair or watchful waiting to individual hernia patient, in addition to accurate risk calculation of incarceration and strangulation, outcomes surveys of emergency hernia surgery are necessary. A recent national survey of 138,309 patie...